reckless | 

Revealed: Face of motorist nabbed driving without insurance for 100th time

He said O’Sullivan is fascinated by cars and loves fixing them.

Today at 08:19

THIS IS the face of Ireland’s most reckless motorist – who is back behind bars this weekend after he was caught driving without insurance for a record 100th time.

Motorist Anthony O’Sullivan – who is already serving a 25-year disqualification from driving having clocked up more than 400 offences under the Road Traffic Act– was nabbed while driving without insurance in Mahon, Cork on July 11 of this year.

When Garda Aoife McCarthy stopped the 37-year-old’s Volkswagen Golf at St. Michael’s Close, O’Sullivan didn’t even attempt to defend himself instead replying “I know ya, I’m sorry.”

Sentencing O’Sullivan – whose latest conviction means his rap sheet now features a total of 501 convictions – Judge Olann Kelleher imposed a five-month jail term.

O’Sullivan of 17 Araglen Court in Togher received his 25-year-disqualification from driving in March of 2021 when he appeared before Kilkenny District Court.

On that occasion, the court heard how gardaí had attended a two-vehicle collision on the M8 at Johnstown on December 17, 2020.

The court was told a female had been driving one of the cars, got nervous and asked O’Sullivan, who was with her, to take over driving, before the collision.

Gardaí demanded O’Sullivan’s licence and insurance documents.

He failed to produce them and it transpired he was not insured on that occasion either.

Judge Geraldine Carthy was told the defendant had 473 previous convictions, including “a huge amount” for no insurance.

Solicitor Ed Hughes asked that his client be given credit for his early plea.

He said O’Sullivan is fascinated by cars and loves fixing them..

Instead, Judge Carthy convicted O’Sullivan, imposed a five-month prison sentence and disqualified him from driving for 25 years.

In March 2017, O’Sullivan was called to appear before Judge Olann Kelliher in Cork after he was caught driving without insurance twice, in the space of just seven days, in two different cars.

On October 19, 2016, he drove a green Fiat Punto towards a Garda checkpoint before turning away.

He was followed and caught. The car was seized and impounded.

A week later on October 25th, O’Sullivan was stopped driving another car elsewhere in Cork City.

Once again he had no tax, insurance, or licence.

By 2015, O’Sullivan had already notched up 72 convictions for driving without insurance.

Appearing before Judge Kelliher, in January that year, the judge had to double-check the number of convictions O’Sullivan had clocked up for the same offence.

“Can I ask you again – 72 previous convictions for no insurance?” Judge Olann Kelleher asked.

Insp Eileen Foster confirmed this was the case before adding that the 28-year-old had a list of previous convictions for various offences which ran to the grand total of 421.

Inspector Foster said the accused was caught driving a Suburu Impreza at Glasheen Road, Cork, on February 19, 2014, at a time when it was weaving from one side of the road to the other.

On that occasion, Judge Kelliher jailed him for five months and banned him from driving for 15 years for driving without insurance.

Outside of his convictions for his errant motoring, O’Sullivan is also known to gardai for theft offences.

In May of 2021 he was given a three year sentence for the robbery of a pharmacy and a further suspended sentence of six months in prison for for escaping Togher Garda station through a window.

O’Sullivan admitted robbing the pharmacist of 2,000 prescription-only tablets including Halycion, Gerax, Xanax, Viagra and Alprazolam, worth €500 altogether, contrary to Section 14 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001.

Det Garda Tom Delaney of Douglas Garda station told the court that O’Sullivan arrived at the pharmacy at 9.55pm – just five minutes before closing – and asked the pharmacy assistant for birth control before producing a knife.

He threatened the two staff members on duty and demanded they hand over Xanax, Halycion and other prescription medicines before also grabbing some Viagra and leaving the shop, said the garda.

Det Garda Delaney said that O’Sullivan made full admissions during an interview at Togher Garda station and told gardaí that he carried out the robbery to pay off a drugs debt after he was sent a photo of a bullet and a photo of his partner’s front door.

Det Garda Delaney said that O’Sullivan asked to go to the toilet early on the morning of March 8th at Togher Garda station and managed to escape out a window, but he was captured hiding in a shed in Ballyphehane 40 minutes later.

At the time of the offence, he said, O’Sullivan had a total of 495 previous convictions including ones for robbery, attempted robbery and burglary as well as many for driving offences, and he accepted that O’Sullivan had a serious drug problem.